Ji Qingtang leaned in close, tilting her head and pointing at her neck. “Kiss me! Right here!”
“At this hour, in this place, are you sure?”
Shen Jinyu had no idea what Ji Qingtang was up to. The urgency in her voice gave him the strange impression that she was forcing herself into a state of arousal.
“No duh. If I could kiss myself, why would I need you?”
Ji Qingtang stood on her tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his neck, and pulled him down, pressing her lips directly against his.
Shen Jinyu kept his eyes open, watching her—neither pushing her away nor responding.
Feeling his lips and teeth completely still, Ji Qingtang frowned and opened her eyes, muttering in dissatisfaction, “Can you at least cooperate a little?”
Shen Jinyu’s deep, dark eyes stared at her for a few seconds. Suddenly, he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her into his embrace, lowering his head to cover her lips with his.
Their breaths intertwined. He kissed her deeply, and Ji Qingtang found it hard to withstand. She tried to push him away, but he held her tightly bound in his arms.
“What do you mean by cooperating?” Shen Jinyu murmured against her lips, his words spilling from his throat. “Does this count as cooperating?”
“Don’t… don’t kiss so…”
The word “erotically” wouldn’t quite leave Ji Qingtang’s lips.
Shen Jinyu kissed her neck instead. “Don’t what? Finish your sentence.”
Ji Qingtang stayed silent and reached up to grab his hair.
The sound of arguing in the distance gradually faded, and the click of high heels on the stone path grew clearer. Shen Jinyu frowned and finally released the woman in his arms.
But when Ji Qingtang heard the footsteps, she threw her arms around his waist and tilted her head up to kiss him again.
The sound of heels stopping on the pavement brought Ji Qingtang to gently push Shen Jinyu away with a coy expression, turning her head to look at Yan Xuejiao.
“Sister-in-law, what are you doing here?” Ji Qingtang adjusted her hair and clothes in a transparent attempt to cover up. “Aren’t you having tea with Grandma?”
Shen Jinyu glanced sideways at Ji Qingtang. Her bashful act came all too easily.
Yan Xuejiao’s expression was ugly. She forced a smile and said sarcastically, “It’s Grandma’s birthday today, and the eldest brother and sister-in-law certainly seem to be in good spirits.”
Ji Qingtang smiled. “You have to blame your eldest brother for that. He’s always busy with the company, constantly going abroad for months at a time. The moment he comes back, he clings to me like a little kid.”
Shen Jinyu let out a soft chuckle—whether it was genuine amusement or a silent mockery was hard to tell.
Yan Xuejiao knew Ji Qingtang was deliberately showing off and didn’t want to keep talking to her. “Mother-in-law is still looking for me. I’ll be going now.”
“Don’t rush off.” Ji Qingtang stepped forward and took her hand, her face full of concern. “Sister-in-law, I just heard you and Mingxiu arguing. Are you two having some kind of conflict?”
Yan Xuejiao paused, slowly pulling her hand back. “There’s nothing going on. You don’t need to worry, sister-in-law.”
Ji Qingtang grabbed her hand again, frowning. “Sister-in-law, we married into the Shen family less than half a year apart. I’m genuinely worried about you. Don’t be upset—I’ll have your eldest brother give Mingxiu a good talking-to. How could he treat his new wife with such a terrible attitude?”
Yan Xuejiao grew a bit flustered. “Mingxiu and I are perfectly fine. Sister-in-law, please don’t meddle in matters that don’t concern you.”
Ji Qingtang lowered her voice. “Sister-in-law, I completely agree with what you said today. Although Grandma says three generations or four generations under one roof is all about enjoying family bliss, having one more child in the house really does make a difference.”
As she spoke, she linked her arm through Shen Jinyu’s. “I’ve mentioned this to your eldest brother too, but he still wants to enjoy some more time in a lovey-dovey world of just the two of us. But sister-in-law, you’re different. Mingxiu loves children. If you have a child, even if you two argue or have conflicts in the future, at least for the child’s sake, it wouldn’t escalate to the point of divorce.”
Seeing that Yan Xuejiao’s face was nearly green with anger, Ji Qingtang pressed on, “Sister-in-law, don’t you think what I said makes sense?”
Yan Xuejiao yanked her arm away. “I need to hurry off—Mother-in-law is looking for me.”
Ji Qingtang watched Yan Xuejiao’s retreating figure, crossed her arms over her chest, and turned to look at Shen Jinyu, feeling quite pleased with herself. “Shen Jinyu, did you see that? This is what they call beating magic with magic, fighting tea with tea.”
Seeing that Shen Jinyu didn’t react, Ji Qingtang, in a rare display of patience, explained to him, “You probably didn’t understand that. Let me translate: it means to repay someone in kind—give them a taste of their own medicine.”
But Shen Jinyu just looked at her. “So I’m like a child who clings to you the moment I come back?”
The tone of his rhetorical question made Ji Qingtang feel uneasy. She lowered her arms and said expressionlessly, “I just said that offhandedly to provoke Yan Xuejiao. Don’t single it out and blow it out of proportion.”
With that, she turned and walked away.
When she reached the deep corner of the corridor, her wrist was suddenly grabbed, and she found herself pinned between the wall and the man’s body.
Shen Jinyu: “You use me and then turn your back on me. So heartless—who taught you that?”
Ji Qingtang didn’t feel she’d been heartless at all. Instead, she said with complete confidence,
“I only kissed you twice. It’s not like I did anything more to you. You’re not some innocent virgin boy—do you really need to be so petty about it?”
She paused, then added, “It’s not like I took some huge advantage of you.”
Shen Jinyu raised an eyebrow. “Fine, my mistake. I wasn’t paying attention. Seems our marital affection has deepened more than I realized. So next time, I don’t need your consent, is that what you mean?”
Ji Qingtang watched him being a rogue with such a serious face, took a deep breath, and was about to snap back at him when someone suddenly walked out from the corner.
“I was just passing through. You two continue. Just passing through. Sorry for the intrusion, sorry.”
Shen Yu clearly hadn’t expected to run into his eldest brother and sister-in-law being lovey-dovey in the deep corner.
Ji Qingtang pushed Shen Jinyu away in annoyance, pointing at him in warning. “Today I’m playing along with your act. Don’t make me unhappy, or else I’ll—”
Before she could finish her “or else,” Shen Jinyu reached out, took hold of her pointing finger, and wrapped his hand around hers entirely. “Let’s go. It’s Grandmother’s birthday today. Being away for too long isn’t good.”
Her gaze fell on their joined hands. Ji Qingtang hesitated for a moment, trying to pull her hand free.
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Shen Jinyu held on even tighter. “Aren’t you playing along with my act? Be a little more professional.”
…
When they reached the entrance of the main hall, Shen Jinyu released Ji Qingtang’s hand, then naturally lifted her forearm to loop it through his arm, and stepped through the door.
Seeing the two of them enter, Yang Yan teased them again. “Everyone’s been in here chatting with Grandmother. Where did you two run off to?”
Shen Jinyu glanced at Shen Yu, who was standing off to the side, and smoothly changed the subject. “You’re here?”
Shen Yu gave a dry smile and nodded, then tactically picked up a cup of tea to take a sip.
Yang Yan scolded, “You child, since when did you become so impolite? Seeing your eldest brother and sister-in-law, why didn’t you greet them?”
Shen Yu quickly called out, “Eldest brother, eldest sister-in-law.”
Shen Jinyu hummed in acknowledgment and sat down next to Ji Qingtang.
Ji Qingtang took a sip of tea, gently placed the cup on the table, and smiled lightly to ease the awkwardness, saying:
“On the day your eldest brother and I got married, you arrived late and were made to drink quite a few glasses as punishment. This time, for Grandmother’s birthday, you’re late again. It seems you haven’t learned your lesson. When we eat later, you’ll definitely be made to drink a few more glasses.”
“I deserve the punishment, I deserve it.” After admitting his fault, Shen Yu added, “By the way, eldest sister-in-law, the outdoor racing track owned by our Shen Group has been completed. It was designed according to international Grade 2 circuit standards. According to the plan, it’s meant to be a racing track open to the public for an immersive experience, but it hasn’t been launched on the market yet.”
After setting the stage, he continued, “Next weekend, there’s going to be a small race. If eldest sister-in-law has time, you could bring a few friends along to show some support.”
Ji Qingtang nodded. “If I’m free next weekend, I’ll definitely come to show support.”
Shen Yu’s eyes lit up. “Thank you, eldest sister-in-law.”
Yang Yan sighed and scolded, “All you ever think about is racing. You’re not young anymore, and you still haven’t found yourself a partner. Coincidentally, your mother has a friend whose daughter just came back from studying abroad. She’s very beautiful. How about…”
Shen Yu interrupted, “Mom, don’t worry about it. I already have a girl I like.”
Yang Yan’s face lit up with excitement. “Really? How old is she? What does she do? Bring her home for a visit when you have the time.”
Shen Yu gave a helpless smile. “Mom, don’t rush. I haven’t won her over yet.”
Yang Yan’s excitement faded by more than half. “If you put half as much effort into your love life, you wouldn’t still be single.”
The topic came to an end without resolution.
When Yang Yan and Ji Qingtang went to keep the Old Madam Shen company, Shen Jinyu finally called Shen Yu over.
“Don’t use your sister-in-law as a tool.”
Shen Yu was stunned and asked, “Brother, you know? How did you find out?”
Shen Jinyu said, “I don’t know the details, but your intentions were too obvious.”
Shen Yu didn’t hide it and explained, “She’s a friend of sister-in-law’s. I’m not very close to her, so if I asked her out directly, I was afraid she wouldn’t come.”
Shen Jinyu wasn’t particularly surprised. “Know your limits. Don’t let it happen again.”